President Biden concluded his five-day visit to France on Sunday with a visit to the Enmarne American Military Cemetery, where more than 2,200 American soldiers from World War I are buried.
Biden laid wreaths on the tombstones of American soldiers in a solemn ceremony commemorating their sacrifices for their country.
In his remarks to the press, Biden emphasized the importance of alliances and did not explicitly mention former President Trump, drawing a stark contrast to the former president who famously skipped a visit to the same cemetery in 2018. Trump mentioned the weather at the time, but subsequent reports said he expressed disinterest in visiting the cemetery about an hour outside Paris and called fallen soldiers “losers” and “fools.” Trump denied these reports.
Biden did not answer questions about Trump. But when asked why he was visiting the cemetery, Biden dismissed “the idea that I couldn’t come to Normandy and make a short trip to pay my respects.”
Biden said, “It’s the same story. “America has appeared. The United States showed up to stop the Germans. America showed up to make sure they didn’t win. And America shows up when we need her, just as her allies have shown us.”
Biden pointed to a growing new “perception of some people” in the United States who prefer to be anti-isolationist.
“That’s not who we are and that’s not who America is,” Biden added.
Biden emphasized the importance of maintaining strong alliances to avoid future war.
“The idea is that we could have avoided being involved in a major battle in Europe. That’s not realistic. That’s why it’s so important that we continue to strengthen our alliances, keep NATO strong, and continue to do what we’ve been able to do since World War II. “Biden said.
